Allgemeines » meant a lot for the Pacers, but Game 2 was tig

PITTSBURGH -- Matt Garza provided the edge, even if it ended his night early. The Milwaukee Brewers took it from there, tightening the NL wild-card race with a contentious 1-0 victory over the Pittsburgh Pirates on Saturday. Garza was ejected in the fifth inning after hitting reigning NL MVP Andrew McCutchen for a second time. The bullpen stepped in and kept the surging Pirates at bay with 4 1-3 shutout innings. The Brewers scored the games only run on when Elian Herrera sprinted home on Logan Schafers sacrifice fly off Mark Melancon (3-5) in the ninth. Milwaukee drew within 3 1/2 games of the Pirates for the last playoff spot with eight days left in the regular season by winning for just the second time in its last 13 road games. "We knew what we had to do and we know how things have been going," manager Ron Roenicke said. The Brewers celebrated loudly in the hallway leading to the clubhouse, the kind of fire thats been missing during their lengthy September swoon. Garza, however, stoked the fire with 4 2/3 strong innings. His work included two run-ins with McCutchen. Garza hit the Pittsburgh star centre fielder on the left shoulder in the third then grazed McCutchens elbow with the bases empty two innings later. Both plunkings came with two outs and the bases empty, hardly the kind of pitches meant to send a message. "If people think I hit McCutchen on purpose, with a 1-2 count in a game like this, then youre just an idiot," Garza said. Garza had hit just two batters in 158 innings coming in. McCutchen -- who went to the disabled list in August with fractured rib cartilage shortly after getting drilled while playing in Arizona -- figures Garza was just trying to work inside when the pitches got away from him. "He didnt try to hit me but he got it in and Im sure hes thinking its better he hit me than me hit him with a homer or double or something," McCutchen said. Zach Duke (5-1), a former All-Star with the Pirates, picked up the victory after getting the final out of the eighth. Francisco Rodriguez worked a perfect ninth for his 43rd save of the season and 347th of his career, moving him into a tie with Randy Myers for 10th on the all-time list. Herrera reached on a forceout off Melancon (3-5) in the ninth and moved to third on Lyle Overbays second double of the night. Herrera scored when Schafers fly to left was just deep enough. The Pirates left 10 runners on base and went 0 for 8 with men in scoring position. "The pitchers were out there and kept putting up zeroes," Pirates manager Clint Hurdle said. "We had some opportunities and couldnt push a run across and they got one late." Pittsburgh starter Edinson Volquez retaliated after the first plunking by throwing inside to Milwaukee star Ryan Braun, earning a warning to both benches, making Garzas ejection automatic even as he pled his case to home plate umpire Marty Foster. "He just told me, In this type of situation, my hands are tied," Garza said. "I said, Come on, you know it. Hes like, Yeah, I know and all three umpires over there are like, Youve got to understand the situation." Garzas unexpected departure forced the Brewers to rely on an already taxed bullpen that had blown games on Thursday and Friday. This time a string of six relievers stood firm after letting late leads slip away earlier in the week. The Pirates loaded the bases with one out in the eighth but Starling Marte lined to third and pinch-hitter Gaby Sanchez grounded out to short against Duke. Volquez lacked Garzas crispness early, needing 52 pitches to labour through the first three innings alone, but continued his remarkable bounce back season. The pitcher who went 9-12 with a 5.71 ERA a year ago while pitching for San Diego and the Los Angeles Dodgers lowered his ERA to 3.15 by keeping the Brewers off the scoreboard before exiting in the seventh.. UP NEXT Brewers: RHP Wily Peralta (16-10, 3.70 ERA) makes his 31st start of the season on Sunday. He is 2-1 with a 4.32 ERA in four career starts against the Pirates, all of the starts coming at Miller Park. Pirates: RHP Vance Worley (7-4, 3.18 ERA) returns to the rotation after making a brief move to the bullpen when Charlie Morton was taken off the disabled list. Worley is 0-3 with a 5.48 ERA in four career starts against Milwaukee. He gave up four runs on 12 hits in a 4-3 loss to Milwaukee on Aug. 24. Air Jordan 13 For Sale NZ . -- Chris Crawford hit a 3-pointer with 1:36 left to put Memphis ahead to stay, and the 21st-ranked Tigers beat seventh-ranked Louisville 72-66 Saturday, sweeping the season series from the Cardinals. Air Jordan 13 Retro NZ . His second visit, not so much. Roark (7-5) allowed four runs on 10 hits and one walk over six innings in a 7-2 setback in front of several friends and family members, as the Cubs snapped his personal streak of four consecutive victories on Friday. http://www.cheapairjordan13nz.com/ . The Raptors (15-15) posted six road victories last month and have won seven of their last nine games overall. Toronto visits the Washington Wizards on Friday night. Air Jordan 13 Wholesale NZ .com) - Rick Nash scored twice and Derek Stepan chipped in a goal with one assist as the New York Rangers claimed a 5-2 decision over Calgary at the Saddledome. Air Jordan 13 NZ . PAUL, Minn.The Indiana Pacers drew even in their Eastern Conference semifinal series with the Washington Wizards last time out, but the action shifts to our nations capital Friday night for Game 3. Watch the game on TSN2 and TSN GO at 8pm et/5pm pt. Friday will mark the first second-round playoff game in Washington since 2005. That year, the Wizards were swept by the Miami Heat in the semis, but that wont happen this time around. The Wiz won Game 1 on Monday, but the Pacers clawed back into the series with an 86-82 home victory on Wednesday. Indiana was carried by the unlikeliest of players in Game 2. Roy Hibbert, who scored zero points and grabbed zero rebounds in Game 1s loss, scored 28 points and grab nine rebounds on Wednesday. Hibbert went scoreless three times this postseason and put up donuts in both categories twice, but the All-Star took his mind off things and dominated the Wizards. "Sometimes I wear my heart on my sleeve and other times I just keep things in," admitted Hibbert. "Tonight, I just felt like I just had one thing on my mind: to help this team win. My teammates did a great job of getting me the ball in my sweet spot and believing in me. I just wanted to return the favor." Head coach Frank Vogel acknowledged he didnt call any plays for Hibbert, but the big man was active from the jump. He scored the games first five points and totaled 17 in the first half. "Im sure he didnt like the way he played the other night," said Vogel. "Im sure he didnt like the criticism. Thats the remarkable thing. You play with a certain amount of force and the ball finds you." Another factor that may have freed up Hibbert was the teams announcement that Andrew Bynum, who was signed as a backup in February,, would not appear in a game this postseason and that his tenure with the Pacers was over.dddddddddddd Some reports indicated Hibbert wasnt pleased with the Bynum signing. George Hill finished with 14 points, followed by 12 from Lance Stephenson and 11 out of Paul George. Marcin Gortat had 21 points to lead the Wizards, Bradley Beal added 17 and Nene scored 14 despite rolling his left ankle in the first quarter. All-Star guard John Wall and Trevor Ariza, who scored 22 in Game 1, combined for 12 points in Game 2. Hibberts magical return to form meant a lot for the Pacers, but Game 2 was tightly contested until late in the fourth quarter. Gortat scored with 3:23 to go to get the Wiz within one, but Washington couldnt buy a bucket after that. The Wizards didnt score again until 11 seconds remained in the game and Indiana did enough to knot the series. "End of the day, we played a pretty good game," said Gortat. "We didnt shoot the ball well, especially from the 3-point line. Weve just got to play better." Playoff basketball returned to Washington for the first time since 2008 and this season is the third time since 1982 the Wizards advanced out of the first round. "I hope that when we get back to D.C. were going to see the crowd ready at least 30 minutes before the game," said Gortat. "We need them. I hope they come early and were going to try and bring it." The Wizards went 1-1 at the Verizon Center against the Chicago Bulls in round one. Washington has won two in a row over the Pacers as the host, but Indiana won four straight prior to that. "This is playoff basketball. You cant lose at home," noted Gortat. Game 4 will be Sunday night in Washington. ' ' '